In
2005 the World Wide Web changed from just a place where everyone could meet,
read and write. What it became and is still becoming today in 2014, is an
interactive world where everyone is empowered to become media producers,
distributors and diehard fans. Users are now allowed to interact and come
together with one another to be social media reporters or to create content in
a virtual community. Before Web 2.0 people were limited to just the passive
viewing of content. Example of Web 2.0
is sites such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn which allow users to post,
comment, and update their site as often as they wish. Web 2.0 has created a
shift in digital culture and has completely changed the way people interact
with each other online.
The
great thing about Web 2.0 is that it provides a participatory model of
information sharing. Today, companies have an easier time reaching their target
audiences when they release or are trying to sell a product. The new web has
many tools that encourage users to participate. If we look back before Web 2.0
there was no way to spread information quickly and to a mass group of people.
One thing you can see in marketing today is tracking reports. I myself take use
of trackers that are free on Facebook. I love being able to create a PR post
and upload it to a group Facebook page. The post reaches everyone in the group
and I am allowed to look and see who all has taken a look at my post. For
example, if I created a new product line of cotton t-shirts it would be wise of
me to create my own website where I could post, manage, track and sell my
t-shirts to customers all over the world. What the web does is it pulls states,
countries, and different cultures together by allowing everyone to access and
use its very helpful tools. However, along with everyone having the ability to
produce and distribute does allow for errors such as scam artists and people
who will post written work that is stolen from someone else or is just completely
false information.
The
notion of authority and authorship has changed. Before 2005 most who published
and sent out press releases were certified journalist who have spent many years
at school studying the field and learning how to properly check their facts.
This means the majority of the time when an article was published in the paper
or on the web it had credibility behind it. Today, we have lost that
credibility. You could be a fifteen year old who would like to write a post
about for example our government. Numerous people can use the tool Google.com
to find your article. Then, People will read the article and assume, because it
is posted that it must be true. This is wrong, and people will try to make up
things to publish just because they believe their knowledge is the truth. Also,
aside from published writing is other things produced without professional
expertise credibility. Music is what thousands of people today like to produce
and upload to the internet in hopes of finding a fan base who will love and
appreciate their music. You do not have to be a signed artist to create a
YouTube channel of your own that displays your talent for the world to
see!
If
you are an amateur artist striving to be a star or just having some fun, the
most popular site for such users is YouTube. YouTube is the site that has taken
the idea and concept of what Web 2.0 is and just went over and above to provide
that viral concept for users. On YouTube people are turned into cyber celebs
overnight! Could you imagine posting a video of you doing something funny or
singing a cool song, and the next day you wake up and Google has sent you a
check requesting that you keep making videos for the YouTube site. This leads
us into how musicians, business owners and YouTube makes money. When the
YouTube channel receives views and hits from a consumer the consumer may also click
on the ads or buy the businesses product. The business can track how many views
the creator of the YouTube site is receiving every day and they pay YouTube to
continue running the ad on the creator’s popular site. In return YouTube pays
the creators of the site. It is genius and definitely a new and creative way to
make a living. This has really changed the way society thinks about getting a
job or making money.
Social
Media through Web 2.0 has given everyone their own voice. With Facebook each
user has his or her own page to fill out with thoughts and comments. For
example, every day on Facebook someone is sending around an article or a story
that they would like others to be aware of. This could be something such as the
campaign to legalize same sex marriage. Users who felt this should be legalized
took a stand by changing their Facebook profile picture to an equal sign
symbol. Simple things like this make a big impact on our society, because when
the world sees over 100,000 users putting up equal signs it sends a big message
to our decision makers. It brings the world joy to be able to stand up and post
what they believe that everyone in the world deserves to see and be apart of.
In the beginning of all this new change it may have seemed strange, scary and
unacceptable, but now the public relations industry is learning to adapt to it
and utilize the new concept of spreadable media.
Instead
of being against the new social media and protesting claims of false
credibility, the industry has allowed room for change to take place and are
allowing the Web 2.0 to grow even bigger than ever before. Big news stations such
as HLN have decided to let their audience decide what news they would like to
hear about, and what news we like to dispute with friends over whether or not
the information is really true. I feel as if today we post, pick and talk about
stories that are shared around and a lot of times seem too crazy to be true. When
this happens we turn to our news channels and we allow what is considered to be
the creditable sources verify for us whether or not the current media
circulating is true or false. Society is beginning to see Web 2.0 for the good
it producers, for the connections, and for so many more possibilities for future
advancements. Whether you are someone searching for your history on Geni, a
young boy or girl dreaming for stardom, a business owner looking for a better
way to reach new clients or a gamer just wanting to make some new friends by
joining a cyber-community, Web 2.0 has something it can provide for absolutely
everyone. With thousands of post and videos going viral daily the possibilities
of spreadable media are truly endless for those hoping to achieve their goals.
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